'Employment brokers' will oversee teenage criminals

Boris Johnson today launched a £23million funding programme to help young people find employment and avoid crime.

The fund marks the first step in the Mayor's plans to change the way young people in custody are treated.

Inmates at Feltham Young Offender Institution will be given skills and employment training, while young people released from Cookham Wood, Downview and Holloway will be helped into work by "employment brokers". The programme will also provide apprenticeships and skills training for thousands of young people aged 14-19 who are not in education.

The scheme, which will invite existing organisations to apply for cash, is part of the Mayor's Time for Action plan to tackle the root causes of crime.

Mr Johnson eventually intends to open a separate 150-bed prison for first-time offenders to ensure they do not learn from hardened criminals.

The Mayor's office is holding talks with the Ministry of Justice about the plans but sources say the Government could be reluctant to let a Tory Mayor lead such a radical scheme.

As an alternative to a free standing facility, a separate wing of another jail, segregated from other inmates, could be used. Currently, 25 per cent of young criminals with no previous convictions reoffend, compared with 42 per cent of those with previous offences and 82 per cent of young offenders who have more than 10 previous convictions break the law again.

Mr Johnson also said he will clamp down harder on the parents of young people who play truant.

He said: "My priority is providing life changing opportunities to young Londoners who have fallen out of the education system or need steering away from a life of crime.

"During the economic downturn, this is precisely the right time to provide young Londoners with the education, skills training, and self respect to prosper and achieve great things."

The ESF Youth Programme is jointly funded by the European Social Fund and the London Development Agency.

Organisations and charities who already work with young people can apply for ESF youth programme grants by registering at www.competefor.com until 31 May.

The Mayor was making the announcement at the start of a Met sports scheme in Sidcup aimed at diverting young people from anti-social behaviour.